William J. Jefferson

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William J. Jefferson

William Jennings "Bill" Jefferson (born March 14, 1947 in Lake Providence , Louisiana ) is a former American politician . Between 1991 and 2009 he represented the state of Louisiana in the US House of Representatives .

Career

William Jefferson attended Griffin High School in Lake Providence and then studied at Southern University and A&M College in Baton Rouge until 1969 . After completing a law degree at Harvard University and being admitted to the bar in 1972, he began to work in this profession. Between 1972 and 1973 he worked for the federal district judge Alvin B. Rubin. In 1973 and 1975 he was on the staff of US Senator Bennett Johnston of Louisiana.

Politically, Jefferson became a member of the Democratic Party . He served in the Louisiana Senate from 1979 to 1990 . In 1982 and 1986 he ran unsuccessfully for the office of Mayor of New Orleans. In the 1990 congressional elections , Jefferson was elected to the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC in the second constituency of Louisiana , where he succeeded Lindy Boggs on January 3, 1991 . After eight re-elections, he was able to complete nine legislative terms in Congress by January 3, 2009 . In 1999 he was the Democratic candidate for governor of Louisiana, but lost significantly to Republican incumbent Mike Foster .

William Jefferson has been under surveillance by the FBI since 2006 , which was investigating him for bribery. Nevertheless, he was re-elected to Congress that year. In the 2008 elections, he was probably defeated by Republican Joseph Cao because of the charges against him . On November 13, 2009, William Jefferson was sentenced to 13 years in prison for corruption by a court in Virginia . This is the highest sentence ever imposed on a congressman for this offense. Some of his relatives were sentenced to similar sentences for complicity.

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Commons : William J. Jefferson  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files
personal data
SURNAME Jefferson, William J.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Jefferson, William Jennings (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American politician
DATE OF BIRTH March 14, 1947
PLACE OF BIRTH Lake Providence , Louisiana